Author: route56

As I have noted earlier, I am within walking distance of my polling place. In fact, I have occasionally walked my Minpin and my uncle’s Black Lab by the place. I don’t think it would be appropriate to bring a non-service dog to the polls, so at a quarter to seven, I made the trek alone.

As always, I am disclosing by ballot selections of my own free will. No consideration has been offered or considered for this disclosure.

US Senate: As previously noted, incumbent Jerry Moran‘s office was the most responsive regarding passenger rail.

US Representative, KS-01: Lawrence was gerrymandered from the 2nd District to the first, meaning that our candidates were changed. I went for incumbent Republican Tracey Mann. It will be interesting to see how left-leaning Lawrence will influence the otherwise heavily right-leaning district.

Governor: Four years ago, I voted for Laura Kelly because she was facing the infamous Kris Kobach. (more on him below) This time, I went back to the GOP candidate, Derek Schmidt. The political advertisements had focused on the economy: Kelly supporters accuse Schmidt of planning to re-implement economic measures of the Brownback Administration that they considered devastating, while Schmidt’s campaign accuses Kelly of wrecking the economy with her current economic action.

Secretary of State: Generally, Scott Schwab has kept his nose clean.

Attorney General: Incumbent Derek Schmidt gave up the AG position to run for governor. Running on the republican platform is Kris Kobach. If I didn’t already hate him, one of his antics at Secretary of State got him a serious “benchslap” from a US District Court judge. I’m surprised that the disciplinary office didn’t take any further action. I don’t think he should be qualified to be an attorney, let alone AG. I voted for Democrat Chris Mann.

State Treasurer: Four years ago, Jake LaTurner successfully ran for this position. Two years ago, he successfully ran for Congress in District 2. Governor Kelly appointed her then-Lieutenant Governor, Lynn Rogers, to the vacancy created by LaTurner’s move to Washington. Rogers is now seeking a full term in the Treasurer’s office. However, I went with the GOP candidate, Steven Johnson.

Insurance Commissioner: I voted to retain incumbent Republican Vicki Schmidt.

State Representative: Incumbent Dennis “Boog” Highberger ran unopposed. This seat has been a solid seat for the Democrats for as long as I have been a voter.

Judicial Retention: There was a campaign on the right to oust much of the Supreme Court. Six out of the seven Supreme Court seats were up for retention this election cycle. I voted to retain them all, along with the Court of Appeals and District Court positions.

Ballot Questions: There were two constitutional amendments and one Douglas County ballot question. The first amendment was one that would give the legislature an opportunity to veto any actions taken by an executive agency. This came about because Republican legislators did not agree with Governor Kelly’s actions in handling the early waves of COVID. The second was to mandate the elected office of Sheriff in the counties that currently have one (Riley County, which contains most of the city of Manhattan, is the only one county in Kansas that doesn’t) I voted against both of these questions. The Douglas County question was straightforward: “Shall the Governing Body of Douglas County, Kansas, increase its number of commissioner districts from three to five?” The only downside I see is if no one wants to run for the two newly created seats. I voted for the measure.